R.I.P.: Billy Paul, 'Me and Mrs. Jones' Philly soul singer R.I.P.: Billy Paul, 'Me and Mrs. Jones' Philly soul singer Updated: April 25, 2016 â 11:37 AM EDT Dan DeLuca Music Critic Dan DeLuca is an Inquirer pop music critic. But his "In the Mix" column in the Weekend section ventures further afield, into books, movies, TV, the Internet, graphic novels and anything you might call "popular culture." More by Dan DeLuca Arrow icon Billy Paul, the Philadelphia soul singer best known for "Me and Mrs. Jones," the sublime cheating song that is a peak experience from the classic Sound of Philadelphia era, died of cancer on Sunday at age 81. His obituary is here . Is "Me and Mrs. Jones," which was written by Kenny Gamble, Leon Huff and Cary Gilbert and a #1 pop and R&B hit for Paul in 1972, the greatest sneaking around song of the '70s soul era?

You know it is, though Luther Ingram's Stax hit "If Loving You Is Wrong (I Don't Want To Be Right)," also from 1972, comes in a close second. Gamble and Huff released this statement on the passing of Paul on Sunday: "We are very saddened to learn of the sudden death of our good friend and Philadelphia International Records recording artist Billy Paul. From the time we saw Billy performing live, and then signing him to our PIR/TSOP label, we immediately realized that we had discovered and launched one the most unique voices in the music industry. Billy's voice combined both Jazz, R&B and Soul vocals, making him one the great artists to come out of Philly and to be celebrated worldwide. Our proudest moment with Billy was the recording of the salacious smash ‘Me and Mrs. Jones.’ In our view, it is one of the greatest love songs ever recorded. Billy ...will forever have a special place in music history.” But there was more to Billy Paul, who was born Paul Williams, than "Me and Mrs. Jones." The North Philly native was a teenage ballad singer in the early 1950s, before later in the decade serving in the U.S.

Army in Germany, where he was stationed with Elvis Presley and formed a band with Bing Crosby's son Gary. He fronted jazz and soul combos in the '60s in Philadelphia and released Feelin' Good At The Cadillac Club on the Gamble label in 1968. After "Me and Mrs. Jones," for the album 360 Degrees of Billy Paul topped the charts, Philadelphia International followed the hit up with "Am I Black Enough For You?," one of the label's most confrontational, socially conscious releases, which was regarded warily by conservative radio programmers. It killed the "Mrs. Jones" momentum, but had an impact as an anthem of racial pride in the long run, and was sampled on the title cut to Philadelphia gangsta rap pioneer Schoolly D's 1989 album Am I Black Enough For You? Paul's 1973 album War Of The Gods is a trippy six-song psychedelic soul experience that followed Isaac Hayes, Marvin Gaye and the Temptations' "Papa Was A Rolling Stone" into a mind expanding direction. It's ripe for rediscovery, and worth a look and listen for the album art alone.

Paul's 1975 album When Love Is New again caused controversy when his songs "Let's Make A Baby" was considered too risque for radio play. And in 1976, the avowed Beatles fan recorded a memorable cover of Paul McCartney's "Let Em In," which he recast as a Civil Rights anthem. Check out those songs below. 'Me & Mrs. Jones' Singer Wins Half Million Dollars | Fox News 'Me & Mrs. Jones' Singer Wins Half Million Dollars By Roger Friedman 'Me & Mrs. Jones' Singer Wins Half Mil In the music industry, the rip-offs are endless and continuing. Record companies have traditionally destroyed artists, and then lawyers have often done the same to their clients. It's all kind of sad when you realize that while the lawyers and artists bicker, a few moguls have laughed their way to mansions, private pension plans and lifestyles worthy of sheiks. So it's good news today that Philadelphia rhythm and blues singer Billy Paul ( search ), whose 1973 hit "Me & Mrs. Jones" has been a radio staple for 30 years, has won a major verdict.

On Thursday, Paul triumphantly won $500,000 from his former record company's owners, Kenneth Gamble and Leon Huff. He could have won more, but a statute of limitations prevented him from collecting royalties earlier than 1994. Can you imagine if he'd been able to go back all three decades? Paul asserted in court that he had not received a royalty accounting from Gamble and Huff's Philadelphia International label in about 27 years. Then, a year and a half ago, he heard his voice singing "Me & Mrs. Jones" on a Nike commercial. Realizing he had never agreed to be a Nike spokesman, he found San Francisco attorney Steven Ames Brown, who specializes in such cases. Brown hired an expert auditor, who went back over Philadelphia International's accounting. The jury was out for 90 minutes on Thursday. "And Billy Paul was Kenny Gamble's best friend," Brown said yesterday. "Can you imagine what might have happened to the others?" The other potential winners in this case could be the many dozens of artists who turned out hits for Philadelphia International in the 1970s.

The O'Jays, The Spinners, The Three Degrees, Lou Rawls, Teddy Pendergrass, Harold Melvin & the Blue Notes are among those acts. Blanche Williams Paul, Billy's wife, said yesterday in a statement: "Winning this case opens the door for all of those other artists whose royalties were withheld or under-accounted to go to court and seek justice, and to know that they have a good chance of winning their case. This is just the beginning of G&H's worst nightmare. The avalanche cometh." Memphis Sings Like Never Before Meantime, I went to Memphis this weekend for the beginning of a week-long celebration of soul music. Four years ago, when I was in Memphis to start our documentary, Only the Strong Survive, the whole town was obsessed with Elvis Presley ( search ). This was very painful to me, as the city's real legacy was not with this pill-popping, self-indulgent diva who had shag carpeting on his ceiling, but in the beautiful rhythm and blues of Stax and Hi Records. But back in 1999, Elvis was everywhere.

The only place you could even buy a Stax T-shirt was at Tater Red's on Beale Street. The original Stax studios had been demolished, and all that remained was an empty lot of weeds with a dingy plaque on East McLemore Street. For our film, the legendary Carla Thomas, who'd sung "Gee Whiz," reminisced with us in 100-degree heat in the middle of that barren space. Since then a lot has happened, and it's all good. Andy and Staley Cates, two enterprising brothers from Memphis, have built a gorgeous museum on the site. Soulsville USA ( search ) opens this Friday, and it could not be better. First of all, the façade is a replica of the original building, as if it had never been knocked down. Inside, in the beautifully designed space, there are dozens of salutes, interactive and otherwise, to Stax's greatest stars: Rufus Thomas, Sam and Dave, Isaac Hayes, The Staple Singers, William Bell, the Bar-Kays and Carla herself. There are even areas for other Memphis R&B labels, like Hi (Al Green, Ann Peebles, Willie Mitchell) and Goldwax (James Carr).

It was too much to absorb in one visit, and I can't wait to return. The Web site is Hopefully, the museum will reinvigorate an area of town badly in need of help. Already there are signs that it's working. But the rest of Memphis is humming. Four years ago the city was digging and renovating; the area around the Peabody Hotel was a mess. Now the whole place is turned upside down by the wondrous Peabody Place — malls, restaurants and bars that fit in so well with old Beale Street. Gibson Guitars has its own museum and restaurant and there's an Isaac Hayes restaurant, too. On Saturday night the whole place was so busy it was like Times Square. This is the city to visit this summer. I have to thank Linn Sitler and Tommie Pardue of the Memphis Film Commission for bringing us down and turning us on to their revitalized city. The food is so good in Memphis you are in constant danger of needing an angioplasty! When you get to town, make a local take you to the fabled Cozy Corner for ribs and chicken. There is nothing like it in the world. Dr. Atkins would have approved.

Advertisement Me and Mrs. Jones - The Best of Billy Paul by Billy Paul on Apple Music Me and Mrs. Jones 14 Songs Album Review Too easily dismissed as little more than a one-hit wonder, Billy Paul was, in fact, one of the most gifted and affecting talents to grace the Philadelphia International stable — the recipient of some of the Gamble & Huff team's most lush and sophisticated productions. His deeply soulful voice bridged the gap between jazz and soul, textured in equal measure by street-smart swagger and touching vulnerability. Me and Mrs. Jones: The Best of Billy Paul goes far beyond the classic title track in restoring the singer to prominence, showcasing his versatility via superb covers of pop favorites, including Bob Dylan's "Don't Think Twice, It's All Right," Elton John's "Your Song," and Paul McCartney's "Let 'Em In." With the inclusion of R&B chart hits like "Thanks for Saving My Life" and "Billy's Back Home," it all adds up to a definitive portrait of Paul in his prime. Customer Reviews TIMELESS!!!!! BILLY PAUL SOUNDS AS SINCERE TODAY, AS HE DID WHEN HE RECORDED IT!!!!

Q.3/18/2008 Biography Born: December 1, 1935 in Philadelphia, PA Genre: R&B/Soul Years Active: '50s, '60s, '70s, '80s, '90s, '00s, '10s Billy Paul earned all his hits in the '70s as an R&B vocalist, although he'd been recording since the '50s, when he debuted on Jubilee. Born in Philadelphia in 1935, Paul was featured on radio broadcasts at the age of 11 and had an extensive jazz background. (He worked with Dinah Washington, Miles Davis, and Roberta Flack, as well as Charlie Parker, before forming a trio and recording for Jubilee.) His original 1959 recording of "Ebony Woman" for New Dawn was later re-recorded for Neptune as the... Top Albums and Songs by Billy Paul 1. "Me and Mrs. Jones" - Billy Paul "Me and Mrs.

Jones" Billy Paul Philadelphia International 3521 orn and raised in Philadelphia, Paul Williams began his singing career at the age of eleven, thanks to a neighborhood friend by the name of Bill Cosby. It was Cosby who helped the young man land a singing spot on WPEN, which led to a string of local appearances. Listening at home to his family's collection of 78's, Paul began to develop a vocal style that would eventually incorporate traces of jazz, R&B, and pop. "That's how I really got indoctrinated into music," he recalled. "My mother was always buying and collecting records. She would buy everything from Jazz at the Philharmonic Week of December 16, 1972 1. Me and Mrs. Jones Billy Paul 3. If You Don't Know Me By Now Harold Melvin & the Blue Notes 4. You Ought to be With Me Al Green 5. It Never Rains in Southern California Albert Hammond As the young man grew, so did his interest in music. Seeking to increase his technical skills, he attended Temple University, West Philadelphia Music School, and Granoff Music School.

Before too long, he was appearing in local clubs -- and discovered that he had to change his name, to avoid confusion with another Paul Williams, who was then singing lead with the Temptations. As Billy Paul, he soon became an underground phenomenon in Philadelphia. Switching from rock to pop to soul ballads, he began getting national recognition and turned up in concert with Dinah Washington, Nina Simone, Miles Davis, the Impressions, Sammy Davis, Jr., and Roberta Flack. Billy formed a trio and cut his first record, "Why Am I," for Jubilee Records, before being drafted into the armed services. After his release came a quick stop with the Flamingoes and a brief stand-in for one of the Blue Notes with Harold Melvin. (More than one reviewer described Billy's "saxophonic baritone" as resembling that of the Blue Notes' Teddy Pendergrass.) His first album, Feelin' Good at the Cadillac Club, was a commercial flop but did mark the beginning of his relationship with the writing and production team of Kenny Gamble and Leon Huff. They put the album together and released it on their own Gamble label. They also assembled his second album, Ebony Woman, which bombed on their Neptune label.

In the early seventies, Kenny and Leon formed another record company, Philadelphia International, and one of the first artists they signed was their old friend Billy Paul. His first album for the new firm was entitled Going East, and it, too, went right down the drain. By that time the year was 1972. Billy's fourth album was designed to show him off as "an all-round entertainer." In fact, it was called 360 Degrees of Billy Paul. Among the tracks was a tune that Gamble and Huff had helped write -- a soul ballad about the touchy theme of adultery. "I knew that, 'Me and Mrs. Jones' would be a hit even before it was released," said Billy. "It's a song that everybody can relate to." Not everyone agreed with that philosophy -- in fact, a number of stations refused to play the record because it discussed an "immoral" theme without condemning it. Regardless, "Me and Mrs. Jones" became one of the largest-selling singles of the year, with sales topping four and a half million copies. Billy Paul went on to win a Grammy Award for "Me and Mrs. Jones," for the Best Male Rhythm and Blues Performance.

Later, it was voted Song of the Year at the Second Annual Soul and Blues Night in Los Angeles. "Me and Mrs. Jones" peaked on the charts in December 1972, yet remained a strong seller for another two months. Then, in April, the next Billy Paul single was released, and it nearly killed his career. Radio program directors recoiled, fearing community reaction to the mere title alone. For that reason, "Am I Black Enough for You?" received almost no air play and faded in five weeks. It took until the spring of 1974 for Billy to score another Top 40 hit, and even then, only barely. Its ironic title: "Thanks for Saving My Life." Billy Paul - Me And Mrs. Jones (1972) - YouTube Billy Paul - Me And Mrs. Jones (1972) Want to watch this again later? Sign in to add this video to a playlist. Need to report the video? Sign in to report inappropriate content. Rating is available when the video has been rented. This feature is not available right now. Please try again later.

Uploaded on Oct 2, 2011 *Sorry, but if you do not have good taste, click thumb down. *Se você não tem bom gosto, clique polegar para baixo. Hit nº 20 Brazil/1972. 20ª mais tocada no Brasil em 1972. Category The Life of a Song: ‘Me and Mrs Jones’ The Life of a Song: ‘Me and Mrs Jones’ Supremely worldly 1973 song about adultery has been covered by artists such as Amy Winehouse by: Ludovic Hunter-Tilney Fornication and adultery were illegal in Pennsylvania until 1973. Laws prohibiting them were abolished that year, but not without a struggle. In November 1972, as the new criminal code was being debated, a Democrat in the state legislature proposed an amendment protecting the ban. It was defeated by 111 votes to 73. The blow to Pennsylvanian morality came three nights after Philadelphian singer Billy Paul appeared on the television show Soul Train.

He wore a suave velvet suit and sang his new single, “Me and Mrs Jones”, as couples slow-danced around the foot of the stage. The song was about adultery. “Me and Mrs Jones, we got a thing going on,” Paul sang in a beautifully sultry tone. “We both know that it’s wrong, but it’s much too strong to let it go now.” Tinkling piano, strings and a sighing saxophone made the extramarital liaison sound the very height of sophistication. Never has the seventh commandment been broken so smoothly. The song, which went on to hit number one in the US, was written by Kenny Gamble, Leon Huff and lyricist Cary Gilbert. Gamble and Huff (good names for a production duo) were instrumental in creating Philadelphia soul, a lushly orchestral style that supplanted Motown in the 1970s. They were inspired to write “Me and Mrs Jones” by the sight of a couple who regularly met in the bar below their office, always playing the same song on the jukebox. Perhaps that song was Doris Day’s “Secret Love”, from the 1953 film Calamity Jane.

The melody of the first line Day sings, “Once I had a secret love”, is slyly quoted by the sax solo at the start of “Me and Mrs Jones”. I doubt that the 73 legislators who voted to keep Pennsylvania’s anti-adultery laws were Soul Train viewers. But it is tempting to imagine them watching Paul sing “Me and Mrs Jones” with mounting outrage, and perhaps an intuition of defeat. It is a supremely worldly song, knowing and seductive, aware of the misdeed it describes and the impossibility of legislating against it. Amy Winehouse “Me and Mrs Jones” has been covered numerous times. The fate is apt. Cover versions are music’s version of adultery, a coveting of thy neighbour’s song. The best ones are caught between fidelity and faithlessness. They must be true to the song being covered while also taking the liberty of adding something: otherwise the result is karaoke. A degree of adulteration is vital. Of the many interpretations of “Me and Mrs Jones”, the most memorable is also the most faithless. It is Amy Winehouse’s “Me and Mr Jones”, from her 2006 album Back to Black.

Winehouse’s version swaps the original’s rich soul for louche doo-wop and alters Mrs Jones’s gender. The lyrics are addressed to a nameless man with whom the singer is having an on-off relationship. To her annoyance he has made her miss a show by the rapper Slick Rick. She is determined that he won’t allow her to miss a show by a New York rapper she loves even more, Nas (real name Nasir Jones). The cheating runs both ways. “Can’t believe you played me out like that,” Winehouse tells the nameless lover. But in the next breath she pledges herself to Nas (“Nobody stands in-between me and my man/ Cause it’s me and Mr Jones”). Her voice is slurred, vivacious; she follows her own tune as though two-timing the jaunty doo-wop. What a wonderful singer she was, and how awful that the one thing she couldn’t cheat was death. For a podcast with clips of the songs, visit ft.com/culturecast Photographs: Michael Putland/Getty Images; Leon Neal/AFP Sample the FT’s top stories for a week You select the topic, we deliver the news.

Select topic Billy Paul obituary | Music | The Guardian Billy Paul obituary American singer who scored a massive hit with the soul classic Me and Mrs Jones Billy Paul at a reception in London in 1973. Photograph: Michael Putland/Getty Images Monday 25 April 2016 11.55 EDT Last modified on Friday 11 November 2016 06.59 EST Billy Paul: five of the best from the soul maestro who created an all-time classic Read more Me and Mrs Jones, which tells the tale of a man’s infatuation with his married lover, was one of the classic soul songs of the 1970s. It was performed with jazzy cool by Billy Paul, who has died of pancreatic cancer aged 81. A key figure in the success of Kenny Gamble and Leon Huff’s “Philly sound”, in his best performances Paul combined jazz technique with rhythm and blues fervour. He was born Paul Williams in North Philadelphia. His was a musical family – and he studied his mother’s collection of jazz records by such singers as Nat King Cole and Billie Holiday.

Paul made his first radio broadcast at the age of 11, before studying at the West Philadelphia Music school and the Granoff School of Music. At 16 he appeared at Club Harlem in Philadelphia on the same bill as the saxophonist Charlie Parker . Paul recalled that: “Bird told me if I kept struggling I’d go a long way; and I’ve never forgotten his words.” Pinterest Billy Paul performing Me and Mrs Jones He was soon playing at venues outside Pennsylvania – and in 1951, at the Apollo theatre in Harlem, New York, his manager persuaded him to create a stage name to avoid confusion with the saxophonist Paul Williams. In 1957 his career was interrupted by military service. Paul was posted to Germany, where his unit included both Elvis Presley and Gary Crosby , son of Bing. According to Paul, Elvis was not interested in playing music during his military service, but Paul and Crosby formed a jazz band which toured throughout Germany. Returning to his civilian life, Paul resumed his career as a jazz singer, until in 1967, Gamble and Huff signed him to a recording deal.

The first album, Feelin’ Good at the Cadillac Club (1968), was a recreation of Paul’s club act, but its successor, Ebony Woman (1970), added a more contemporary soul element. It sold enough copies to become a Top 20 hit on the soul charts. In 1970, Gamble and Huff started their Philadelphia International label with backing from CBS Records. Following the Motown model, they set up their own studios, Sigma Sound, with its own group of session musicians. Paul became one of the label’s stalwarts, alongside Harold Melvin & the Blue Notes, the O’Jays and Archie Bell. Paul released the album Going East in 1971, before Me and Mrs Jones and its accompanying album, 360 Degrees of Billy Paul, made the commercial breakthrough the following year. A British reviewer attributed the song’s success to its “slyly insinuating mixture of iced vocal and emotive story line”. The single sold over 2m copies in the US alone and became an international hit, reaching No 12 in Britain early in 1973.

That year, Paul toured Europe with the O’Jays and the Intruders, recording a live album at the London show. Me and Mrs Jones went on to win the Grammy award for best male rhythm and blues vocal performance, despite strong competition from Ray Charles and Curtis Mayfield . The follow-up to Me and Mrs Jones was Am I Black Enough for You? , a controversial paean to black power which alienated many radio station managers and much of the white audience that had bought its predecessor. Paul’s only subsequent mainstream pop hit was to be Thanks for Saving My Life in 1974. Pinterest Billy Paul singing Thanks for Saving My Life His recordings nevertheless remained popular with black audiences, despite further controversy over the title of a 1976 single Let’s Make a Baby. Although the lyrics also had a strong black pride element in their reference to raising a child to “walk around with his head held tall”, the song’s sexual content led some moral leaders, including the Rev Jesse Jackson, to urge broadcasters to ban the disc. Paul continued to record for Gamble and Huff’s company until 1980.

A highlight of his later albums was a version of Paul McCartney’s song Let ’Em In, to whose lyrics Billy Paul added references to heroes of the civil rights struggle, including Malcolm X and Medgar Evers. Two decades later, Paul sued Philadelphia International for underpayment of royalties for Me and Mrs Jones and was awarded $500,000 by the jury. In later years, he continued to appear at clubs and jazz festivals in the US and abroad. A biographical film, Am I Black Enough for You? , directed by Göran Hugo Olsson, was released in 2009. After a brief period in hospital, Paul died at his home in Blackwood, New Jersey. He is survived by his wife, Blanche, who managed his career for many years. • Billy Paul (Paul Williams) singer, born 1 December 1934; died 24 April 2016 Soul Train History Book: Billy Paul - Soul Train Soul Train History Book: Billy Paul Music · Tagged: Billy Paul , Don Cornelius , featured , Gamble & Huff , history book , Me and Mrs.

Jones , music , Philadelphia Records , soul train , stephen mcmillian , TSOP When most people think of Billy Paul, one song comes to mind: the timeless classic “Me & Mrs. Jones.” But Billy Paul’s music catalogue is much more than that one smash hit; he has created some of the most beautiful, thought provoking and lasting music ever made. Billy Paul was born and raised in North Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He began his singing career when he was only twelve years old, singing on local radio shows. It was from listening to his family’s collection of 78 rpm records that he began developing a vocal style that would combine jazz, R&B and pop. Billy attended Temple University, West Philadelphia Music School and Granoff School of Music for formal vocal training. He eventually became known through his performances on Philadelphia’s underground music circuit. He cut his first record entitled “Why Am I” with a trio he formed on Jubilee Records before being drafted into the Armed Forces. After his discharge, he joined the new record label Dawn Records and had a brief stint as a member of Harold Melvin & the Blue Notes. It was during this time he met producers Kenny Gamble and Leon Huff.

He eventually went solo and recorded his first album, Feeling Good at the Cadillac Club, produced by Gamble & Huff on the Gamble label. His second album, Ebony Woman, was released on Gamble & Huff’s Neptune label. His third album, Going East, was released on Gamble & Huff’s newly formed Philadelphia International Records label. This album and Ebony Woman made some headway as the record-buying public became familiar with Billy and his trademark, distinctive singing voice. But it was “Me & Mrs. Jones” that generated great buzz and excitement about the Philadelphia-born singer. Released in September 1972, this jazzy/R&B tune, literally about dating someone else’s wife, was a monstrous hit, soaring to #1 on the soul charts for four weeks in December 1972 and #1 on the pop charts in January 1973. It sold well over one million copies and made Billy Paul a superstar and earned him a Grammy Award. This unforgettable track garnered widespread airplay on many radio stations, got played on a lot of turntables, in bar jukeboxes and in blue light in the basement parties. It has also been said many babies were conceived off of this song.

With a song as hot as “Me & Mrs. Jones” comes appearances on television, and Billy made several appearances on all of the major television shows. The first show he appeared on to promote “Me & Mrs. Jones” was none other than Soul Train on its October 1972 taping. Host Don Cornelius said in his introduction, “For the most part it’s the funky soul sounds and the heavy rock sounds that seem to dominate today’s music scene, and for a song stylist to make his way through all of that, he has to be pretty heavy.” From the time Billy sang the opening lines of “Me & Mrs. Jones,” the Soul Train Gang screamed and yelled. He received a thunderous ovation afterwards and shouts of “Right on!” from the enthusiastic dancers when he finished his performance. In the interview, Don told Billy, “I guess I don’t have to tell you that ‘Me & Mrs.

Jones’ is the baddest song in the world today.” When he asked Billy how he would define himself as an artist, Billy said, “Well, I think I would describe myself primarily as a singer that’s dealing with what’s happening and what’s relevant now.” He further stated that the theme of “Me & Mrs. Jones” is something that’s been happening for centuries and is more open today. Don: “I also detect the possibility that you might have a jazz background. Is that correct or incorrect?” Billy: “That’s very correct. I’ve been singing since I was 11. At 16 I was working with Charlie Parker. He’s one of the giants. Coming from a jazz background it was one of the greatest things to happen for any singer because of the fact I took an interest at heart but learned to build on it. When I say that I just didn’t want to be labeled as a jazz singer but like my new album, the one that ‘Me & Mrs.

Jones’ is on, it’s called 360 Degrees of Billy Paul and that means I’m covering all of the territories.” Billy later performed “This is Your Life,” a nice tune about celebrating one’s life which was taken from his previous album Going East. It was unusual for an artist to return to the following month’s Soul Train taping to perform the same song he or she did on the previous taping, but Billy did just that on the program’s November taping to not only further promote “Me & Mrs. Jones,” but his newly released 360 Degrees of Billy Paul album. “Me & Mrs. Jones” was indeed such a popular record that Don could not resist bringing him back to his show during the height of the song’s massive popularity. While holding Billy’s new album, Don said, “His great recording of ‘Me & Mrs. Jones’ will go down as one of the biggest successes of the year 1972. Since he visited us last, his album 360 Degrees of Billy Paul has been released on Philadelphia International and contains such tunes as “Let’s Stay Together,” “Me & Mrs.

Jones” and “Brown Baby,” which is threatening to become as big a success as “Me & Mrs. Jones.” Billy proceeded to do “Brown Baby,” a great mid-tempo track about black unity. Hats would ultimately become Billy’s trademark as he wore a purple vinyl apple cap on this appearance. Naturally, the Soul Train Gang wanted to know more about the man whose record the majority of them bought, so a Q&A session with Billy was held midway in the show. One dancer asked the $64,000 question on most people’s minds: “Is there a Mrs. Jones in your life?” Billy laughed and replied, “I can’t tell you that!” Dancer Bobby Washington asked Billy if he ever thought of singing with a female singer to which Billy replied, “I have a couple in mind including a young lady from Cincinnati named Randy Crawford.” (Randy Crawford would go on to become a popular singer years later). After the Q&A session, Billy performed his still blazing hot single “Me & Mrs. Jones” for the second time on the show, to the delight of the hyped up Soul Train Gang. “Me & Mrs.

Jones” was an influence on the music of a new artist in 1973 named Barry White as well as other artists. It was rumored that Motown Records felt the impact of the mega-success of “Me & Mrs. Jones,” so Marvin Gaye and Ed Townsend penned the sensual “Let’s Get It On,” which became an equally monstrous hit in the late summer/fall of 1973. Of interesting note, The Dramatics recorded a fantastic cover version of “Me & Mrs. Jones” in 1975, while Barbara Mason recorded an answer record to “Me & Mrs. Jones” entitled “Me & Mr. Jones” in 1974. Billy’s fifth album, the outstanding War of the Gods (with an equally outstanding album cover), was released in October 1973. Its first single, “I Was Married,” a terrific tune in the vein of “Me & Mrs. Jones,” failed to chart, but the second single, “Thanks For Saving My Life,” a heartwarming mid-tempo tune, made it to number nine on the soul charts and 37 on the pop charts.

Billy returned to Soul Train on its January 20, 1974 taping to perform “Thanks For Saving My Life” and an uptempo danceable tune entitled “The Whole Town’s Talking” from War of the Gods. “Super smooth Billy,” as Don referred to him in his introduction of the singer, looked dapper in grey suit and grey hat with the brim of the hat slightly tilted down. During Billy’s interview with Don, he mentioned that he had returned from a European tour with The O’Jays and The Intruders, stating that the response was great and very receptive. “The most amazing thing is to see people who can’t understand your language but they enjoy your music and the sound,” Billy told Don. Several of the songs he performed on the London leg of the European tour were released on his wonderful live album entitled Billy Paul Live in Europe. Billy’s seventh studio album, the fantastic When Love Is New, was released in November 1975. He appeared on Soul Train’s April 4, 1976 taping to promote the album. He opened with the album’s title tune, an outstanding classic romantic ballad.

As he performed, the entire set was dark to set the right proper mood and atmosphere with the exception of a spotlight on Billy, who wore a white suit and black hat. It’s an underrated track and is one of the best love songs ever recorded. Later during the interview, Don asked Billy if he was gratified over the success of the When Love Is New album. Billy replied that he was, due to the fact that he had a chance to write some songs for the album, including “Let the Dollar Circulate.” Don asked who wrote the controversial tune on the album “Let’s Make A Baby,” to which Billy answered Kenny Gamble and Leon Huff. The mere title of that song brought laughter among Billy, Don and the Soul Train Gang due to its suggestive title. He spoke of the concerts he had done recently with MFSB (Mother Father Sister Brother), chiefly his concert in New York’s Carnegie Hall which was very successful. Billy then performed the uptempo, thumping “People Power,” a great song about solidarity among the human race.

Billy closed with the aforementioned “Let’s Make A Baby.” Unlike what most people think of the song’s title, the song is a gentle, beautiful ballad about a married couple coming together to “be fruitful and multiply” and make children and raise them with wisdom and knowledge. Some critics at the time thought the song was promoting fornication and out-of-wedlock children, but that wasn’t the case at all. It was simply a beautiful and tender tune about procreation. Billy made his last Soul Train appearance on its December 11, 1976 taping. He opened with his performance of “Word Sure Gets Around,” a sweet ballad about the spreading of relationship rumors from his current album, Let ‘Em In. During the course of the interview, Billy said while he was working on the album for the past nine months his twin sister had died. He mentioned that the title track and another track from the album, “Without You,” were dedicated to her. Billy then performed “Let ‘Em In,” an excellent remake of the Beatles tune. His version is even superior to the Beatles’ original version, interspersed with inspirational audio quotes from Louis Farrakhan, Malcolm X, Dick Gregory and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

Billy closed with “I Trust You,” a wonderful song about a solid relationship based on trust. “Me & Mrs. Jones” was such a huge hit that it seemed to many that its mega success overshadowed him as an artist. Moreover, the follow-up release to “Me & Mrs. Jones,” “Am I Black Enough For You,” was deemed militant by pop radio stations and it had been said that his music was blackballed thereafter (a similar fate happened to Curtis Mayfield’s music on pop radio after the mega success of the Super Fly movie soundtrack). Also, the onslaught of disco music hurt both the sales and airplay of R&B artists like Billy Paul and others in the mid- to late seventies. Many weren’t even aware that Billy recorded any music after “Me & Mrs. Jones” and dismissed him as a one-hit wonder, which is a shame because his body of work is excellent. Today in his early seventies, Billy still performs around the world. Obviously, no one will ever forget “Me & Mrs. Jones.” Its enduring popularity is forever cemented in music history. However, Billy’s music is much more than one hit song.

To quote part of the title of the hit album that put Billy on the map, he recorded 360 degrees worth of dynamic music in the genres of soul, jazz and pop that is worthy of wider recognition. —Stephen McMillian Journalist, actor, filmmaker, dancer, performer, writer, poet, historian and choreographer. That’s Stephen McMillian. Related Posts Billy Paul: five of the best from the soul maestro who created an all-time classic | Music | The Guardian Soul Billy Paul: five of the best from the soul maestro who created an all-time classic From sampling Malcolm X and Martin Luther King to covering Bob Dylan and Paul McCartney, Billy Paul’s greatest moments were often his most unlikely Billy Paul: making Bob Dylan sound more soulful than ever. Photograph: Gems/Getty Images Tuesday 26 April 2016 10.06 EDT Last modified on Friday 14 October 2016 13.46 EDT Billy Paul obituary Read more This is sort of a mash-up before the age of mash-ups – and arguably one of the most profound that’s existed.

Take one of Paul McCartney’s most poignant post-Beatles songs and add horn stabs, strings and hard drums: what emerges is Billy Paul ’s unapologetic spin on the sweet original. He takes a melodic number and transforms it into a battle-cry anchored by gutsy production. Malcolm X dialogue is sampled and references to slain civil rights hero Medgar Evers are heard, while jazz icon Louis Armstrong also gets referenced. At the song’s end, Billy’s voice raises to an apex sided with passages from Dr Martin Luther King’s I Have A Dream speech. The outcome is both dramatic and effective, proving Billy can not only sing with gusto, but also completely alter a song’s narrative with heartfelt lyrical substitutions. Don’t Think Twice, It’s All Right (Feelin’ Good at the Cadillac Club, 1968) Pinterest Don’t Think Twice, It’s All Right Perhaps no other song in Paul’s catalogue captures how emotive his voice can be. This one begins with a sparse arrangement, Paul sings a capella – whispering and crooning over a jagged bass line – until a piano emerges where we find him belting out lyrics, fluttering heavy over drums and a lively piano.

It’s of course a cover of Bob Dylan’s 1962 masterpiece, yet Paul’s version – with its perky arrangement and vocal strength – almost renders Dylan’s original tepid. Despite its title, the album isn’t a live recording but rather represented Paul’s live show at the time (the Cadillac Club was a legendary venue in Philadelphia where a young Aretha Franklin worked). This was Paul’s stunning debut album, which became such a commodity that Philadelphia International Records reissued it in 1973. At the time, Paul was primarily a jazz vocalist, but this release certainly showed a burgeoning artist with more gifts than anyone had previously thought. Thanks For Saving My Life (War of the Gods, 1973) Thanks For Saving My Life Billy Paul, soul singer best known for Me and Mrs Jones, dies Read more Following War of the God’s 2012’s reissue, Paul referred to it as “the best album I’ve ever done in my life”. An exuberant standout, Thanks For Saving My Life – at just under three minutes – is short compared to some of his longer, more well known ballads.

But this is his redemption song, a snappy tune where the vocals are both powerfully belted out (“I can’t live without you, baby!”) or subtly subdued (“Making me feel like I’m living again …”). Despite not being as lavish or orchestral as previous Gamble and Huff releases, it managed to reach No 37 on the top 40 pop hits chart and No 9 on the top 10 soul charts. It’s a more straightforward song off a heady, almost psychedelic soul album arranged by Booby Martin and Lenny Paluka. This is quintessential Paul, the ability to be pronounced without overstepping while pulling back when needed. Am I Black Enough for You (360 Degrees of Billy Paul, 1972) Pinterest Am I Black Enough For You The Sound of Philadelphia was in full swing in the spring of 1973. Gamble and Huff had successfully built a studio and succinct work environment that mirrored Motown’s hit-making machine and Me and Mrs Jones had just been a juggernaut success for the imprint.

Against the advice of the label’s top brass, Paul’s follow-up single would be Am I Black Enough for You, an in-your-face track that tested white radio’s patience with an onslaught of politically black anthems. It wasn’t sultry or catchy as Mrs Jones, but had snappy bongos and loud horns. Paul repeatedly sings “Am I black enough for you?” with lyrics including “Get in line, stop marching in time, you better make up your mind, we’re gonna leave you behind.” Though certainly a departure from his previous work – and one that many say sparked the end of Paul’s popularity – 30-plus years later the song and its release stands as an enormously brave artistic decision and one of Paul’s most enduring. Me and Mrs Jones (360 Degrees of Billy Paul, 1972) Pinterest Me and Mrs Jones Not including Me and Mrs Jones is like excluding Sitting on the Dock of the Bay when writing about Otis Redding – perhaps it’s overplayed but nevertheless underscores his entire canon. It was Paul’s biggest commercial breakthrough and remains a beautifully sultry classic from the 70s.

The single was an international hit (reached No 12 on the British charts in 1973) and sold over 2m copies in the US. It is the prefect example of when production aesthetics, storyline and vocal performances simply marry. In a year of hits, tours and many successes, Paul earned a Grammy for best male R&B vocal performance, beating out contemporaries Curtis Mayfield and Ray Charles in the process. Generations to come will always have “a thing going on with Mrs Jones”. It not only stands as his most recognizable song and biggest hit, but also perhaps his most striking, most cherished, and certainly most timeless.

Question: Who had a hit in 1973 with Me and Mrs Jones
Answer: Billy Paul